US Local Government Delegation Visits Sichuan Province

A 12-member US Local Government Delegation led by Wisconsin Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch visited Sichuan Province December 11-13 at the invitation of the CPAFFC. Consisting of lieutenant governors， state legislators， mayors， government officials of cities and counties from eight states — Wisconsin， Washington， New York， Colorado， Illinois， Tennessee， Kansas and Missouri — the delegation was organized by the China-United States Exchange Foundation (CUSEF).

Established in Hong Kong in 2008 by Tung Chee Hwa， Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference， the CUSEF attaches great importance to maintaining good relations with future leaders of US local governments. The mission is to enhance their knowledge and understanding of China’s development through exchanges and visits to promote long-term development of China-US relations.

Zhong Mian， Deputy Governor of Sichuan Province， met with the delegation in Chengdu on the afternoon of December 12. He said that， with more frequent cooperation and exchanges between the two sides， the U.S. has already become the most important partner of Sichuan. He hoped the delegation’s visit would deepen mutual understanding and promote practical exchanges and cooperation in economy and trade， culture， education， etc.. Lt. Gov. Kleefisch said that the eight states， represented by the 12 members of the delegation， had many things in common with Sichuan Province， creating broad space for cooperation. The visit not only allowed them to gain deep understanding of Sichuan， but also laid a good foundation for future cooperation. The American side would make efforts to further the friendly exchanges and cooperation in economy and trade， science and technology， education and tourism with the province.

During his meeting with the delegation， Chengdu Vice Mayor Zhu Zhihong pointed to the friendship-city ties with Phoenix and Honolulu and friendly cooperative relations with Atlanta， Houston and Louisville. Extensive exchanges and cooperation not only achieved win-win results， but also brought out great potentials for development. He welcomed more American companies to come and invest in Chengdu， especially in the newly approved national-level development zone — the Chengdu Tianfu New Area. He also introduced the two scholarship programs — the Sister Cities Scholarship for Foreign Students and Civil Servants and the Chengdu America Center for Study Abroad Government Scholarship — and expressed the hope that more American students would come and study in Chengdu.

On the evening of December 12， the delegation attended an exchange meeting between Chinese and American local government officials hosted by the Sichuan Provincial People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (SIFA)， meeting the mayors and department heads of Zigong， Sui-

ning and Jiangyou.

In his welcome speech， SIFA President Luo Yubin said that， by inviting the mayors， the SIFA aimed to help American friends know more about Sichuan and provincial cities so as to provide an opportunity for the two sides to exchange ideas on stronger cooperation. The SIFA would make continuous efforts to serve as a bridge for cooperation projects and the smooth advancement of Sino-US friendship.

Zigong Vice Mayor Zhang Bangju， Suining Vice Mayor Deng Wei and Jiangyou Vice Mayor Wang Lei introduced their cities with Powerpoint presentations and expressed a wish to strengthen contacts with the U.S. to promote practical cooperation in various fields at the city level.

The delegation also visited Huaxi High School， Chengdu High-Tech Development Zone and Sansheng Flower Town. Members of the delegation had a short yet happy time with the students of Huaxi High School， learning to do taiji and calligraphy and playing table tennis in the beautiful campus. Lt. Gov. Kleefisch said in excitement that the smiles on the students’ faces and their warm friendship were the most precious memories.

The delegation also had a discussion with leading members of the Education Bureau and schools of the city’s Chenghua District and reached consensus on future cooperation.

At the Chengdu High-Tech Development Zone， the delegation learned about 20 years of its development， achievements and future goals through photoelectron display. They asked in details about the zone’s industries and preferential policies to attract foreign enterprises， and spoke highly of Chengdu’s beautiful natural environment and good investment climate， expressing their willingness to introduce Chengdu to their hometown companies and encourage more American companies to invest in Chengdu. In Sansheng Flower Town， the delegation visited the Happy Plum Wood， Bailu Bay Wetland and Eco-Industrial Park of Flower Production， showing admiration for the successes achieved by the governments at all levels of Chengdu in coordinating urban and rural development， improving ecological environment and helping farmers increase income.

Members of the delegation were deeply impressed by Sichuan’s rich resources， vibrant economic development and warm and friendly people and the visit deepened mutual understanding and friendship. Cyrus Habib， State Representative of Washington， emphasized repeatedly that he came from a sister state of Sichuan and hoped to have closer contacts and cooperation in future. Upon learning that the City of Zigong would build a general aviation industry nesting zone together with the Aviation Industry Corporation of China， he expressed his willingness to introduce Zigong to Everett， the largest production base of the Boeing Company， so that the two cities could cooperate in the field of aviation and develop sister city relations. Nicole Malliotakis， New York State assemblywoman， conveyed her strong wish to develop sisterly relationship with Sichuan to promote exchanges and cooperation in various fields. Bridget Gainer， Commissioner of Cook County， Illinois， said most delegates knew only Beijing and Shanghai and never expected Sichuan， in the far West， to be such a beautiful and developed place. After returning home， she would work to set up a representative office in Chengdu to promote bilateral economic and trade and friendly exchanges.

Wayne Palmer， Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Fontheim International， explained his company engaged in consulting business and provided services to American governments at all levels. The current visit organized by his company was the first of its type. He was very satisfied with SIFA’s reception and promised to introduce more American personages in various social circles to visit Sichuan.

Members of the delegation said that after returning home， they would actively carry out bilateral cooperation in education and work for the establishment of more China-US sister schools. Delegation head Kleefisch said before departing that she learned a lot from this short trip to Sichuan and was deeply impressed by the province’s achievements in manufacturing， agriculture， education and tourism， as well as the warm hospitality of its people. She expected tremendous opportunities for cooperation in future. This trip to Sichuan had made her fall in love with this Chinese province， just like she loved her home state. She would publicize Sichuan among her colleagues and friends when she returned home and encourage more Americans to visit Sichuan.